Tag Archives: Quito

Quito To Santa Marta, Colombia Via Bogota With A Few Dramas

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When you are flying to Colombia, Avianca Lifemiles are a great miles currency to have.  Flights are easily booked online and sometimes they have better award flight availability than their other partners.  I found this to be the case at the time I was booking this route.  For some reason, United was only giving availability in the early morning when I wanted to travel around mid-day to squeeze in one more morning of birding at Guango Lodge.

Lifemiles charges 11,000 miles one way for this routing.

AV8374 Quito (UIO) 16:45 Bogota (BOG) 18:25

AV9792 Bogota (BOG) 20:44 Santa Marta (SMR) 22:18

Theoretically, United should charge 10,000 miles but even on my test run these flights weren’t available and their connections were terrible on what was available.

Up until the day of departure I got several emails from Avianca trying to sell me upgrades on a per segment basis but I didn’t think it was worth it for such short flights.

The taxi from the bus stop at Pifo dropped us right outside the terminal and checking in was quick and easy.

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I would have been tempted by the Johnny Rockets as we don’t have them in Australia but there wasn’t time and I was desperate to get online.  The only stop we made was at the ATM inside as the currency of Ecuador is the USD and I wanted to withdraw some to use in the Caribbean Islands coming up.  DSCN2598

Typical over-priced airport shopDSCN2599

We used our last remaining Lounge Club passes from the Chase Ink (now discontinued) to access the lounge.  I had no internet access for the last 3 days and was dying to know more about the earthquake and check my emails.  DSCN2601

I was shocked to see the extent of the earthquake on the coast, it was really horrifying.  It didn’t seem to have affected the airport and all flights were going out on time.DSCN2602

We grabbed some snacks and drinks at the small buffet in the lounge.DSCN2603

Typical Avianca shorthaul flight, an A319.  It wasn’t full and we had an empty middle seat.  I was glad I didn’t pay money for an upgrade.DSCN2604

Beautiful Andean scenery enroute to Bogota.DSCN2606

We arrived at dusk and had just over an hour to make the connection.DSCN2607

We had to use a bus to get to a different terminal which was easy as we only had carry on bags.  I would have worried about checking bags with such a short connection.DSCN2610

I had one errand in the Bogota airport – use an ATM and withdraw some local currency – Colombian Pesos for things such as taxis, buses, food and anything else I couldn’t pay by card.  Much to my surprise, the NAB ATM card wouldn’t work in any of the different bank’s ATMs!  Not wanting to miss the flight, I changed a $50 note cash so we could get a taxi to the hotel.  At the time I just thought the line was down or banks were updating or something.

The flight brought a new drama.  We all boarded just fine but then as we tried to taxi away, something started beeping.  The pilot brought the plane back and although I didn’t understand the details which were in Spanish there was something wrong with the plane.  We were delayed about 2 more hours while they found another plane for us.

It was only about an hour flight and I was much relieved to see Santa Marta airport lights out the window and to watch the plane on the seatback air show get closer.  I was exhausted and just wanted to get to the hotel and get some sleep.  But all of a sudden, I felt the plane pull back and start gaining altitude and I saw the air show plane get further away from the airport.  WTF?  Why doesn’t he just land?  The crew were strapped in and no one around me spoke English.  The pilot did come on and say something in Spanish but it was way beyond my tourist-level basic Spanish.  We circled for around 15 minutes, then FINALLY descended and made a normal landing.  DSCN2611

We got off the plane as quickly as possible and joined the taxi line outside with pretty much the whole plane.  Taxi fares from the airport are posted and fixed rates.  Santa Marta is 27,800 at night but good luck trying to get change from 30,000 pesos!  Direct to Minca would have been 90,000 night rate, 80,000 day rate.

After around 20 minutes, we arrived at our hotel ready to drop from exhaustion!

Bus Travel Through Eastern Ecuador

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When I was planning this trip, the one thing that worried me was that it was really hard to find information on bus transport along the road between Coca & Quito that would pass by Wildsumaco, Cosanga (Cabanas San Isidro) and Guango Lodge.  It turned out to be as easy as standing on the roadside (or sitting at a bus stop) and hailing the next bus to pass which never took longer than 20 minutes (that could have just been good luck).  None of them were full, in fact they were mostly empty enough that we could each claim a bank of 2 seats and stretch out.  The buses were also very cheap, between $3-8 for each leg.  In the next few photos you can see what the buses were like and see some of the scenery along the way.  It was cool to see signs promoting conservation!

WILDSUMACO TO COSANGA

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Since our bus was headed to Tena, we had to jump out at the crossroads and hail a Quito bound bus-which pulled up just as we were crossing the street!DSCN2279 DSCN2281 DSCN2280 DSCN2282 DSCN2284 DSCN2285 DSCN2286

It was pouring rain as we pulled over by the Cosanga bus stop.  We had been told to go to a small restaurant and call the lodge when we arrived, so braved the rain to walk along the road back towards the town to find the restaurant.DSCN2287 DSCN2288

COSANGA TO GUANGO LODGE

After leaving the lodge, they dropped us at the same bus stop and we hailed a bus after a few minutes.  This trip took place the day after the earthquake and since we had no internet, we were yet unaware of how much damage was done elsewhere in Ecuador.  As you can see, these roads were perfectly fine, you would never know the earthquake had been felt in the region.DSCN2445 DSCN2446

This bus was featuring a Bollywood film of all things!DSCN2447 DSCN2449

The weather was still rainy and glum as we took the hour long ride to Guango Lodge.  Coming from the Amazon, the lodge is on the right side so keep an eye out if the driver doesn’t seem familiar with it.DSCN2451 DSCN2452 DSCN2453 DSCN2454 DSCN2455

GUANGO LODGE TO QUITO AIRPORT

Since Guango Lodge is best known for hummingbirds, we only stayed there for a couple hours before heading back out to the main road to get another bus.  There was no shelter from the rain this time and we waited around 20 minutes before we were finally rescued by a bus.

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We gradually came out of the mountains and started descending into Quito.  The bus would go all the way into the city bus terminal but for people headed to the airport, you need to jump out at Pifo and take a taxi.  Tell the bus driver you are going to El Aeropuerto and you probably won’t be the only one going there.

I don’t remember exactly how much the taxi was, it was around $10-ish and we probably got ripped off but you are pretty much a captive audience and they know you probably have a flight to catch.  It’s less than 10 minutes from Pifo to the airport – easy!  The best thing is that you don’t need to schedule a day in Quito to make a flight the next morning.  In fact it’s probably easier to get to the airport from Guango or Cabanas San Isidro since there is only one road and no traffic!  So why not spend your last night in Ecuador in a beautiful eco-lodge?DSCN2593 DSCN2595 DSCN2596

Hotel Review: Hosteria Airport Garden, Quito

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Having limited time and wanting to concentrate on birding, we spent no time at all in the actual city of Quito.  However, we did need an airport hotel one night as we had a flight to Coca (jungle lodges staging point) very early in the morning.  After doing some research and looking at the cheaper options, I chose Hosteria Airport Garden because of the attractive garden which I hoped would have some birds to watch.  Unfortunately, the day we got there, around 4pm-ish was rainy and cold so we didn’t get to watch birds.  The garden was very pretty as you can see in the photos so it would have been birdy in better weather.

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The room was medium sized but had everything we needed, including free wifi.

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They serve home cooked dinners in the evening if you book in advance and it was really good.  There aren’t any restaurants within walking distance that I could see so it was a good deal.  The next morning, the taxi they pre-arranged showed up right on time and in less than 15 minutes we were in Quito Airport domestic terminal ready to fly to Coca!

Visit The Equator Between Mindo & Quito

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If you are traveling between the Mindo area and Quito, the road goes right past Mitad del Mundo, the monument of the equator so why not jump out and have a look?  Sure it’s uber-touristy but we all need our touristy moments, even in Ecuador!

We were still having bad weather when we arrived.

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Tickets are $3 just to enter the park or around $8 to go into the planetarium and to the top of the monument.  We just went for the entry as we had our backpacks on and just wanted to see the line.DSCN1547

The park is laid out well with several posters giving information.DSCN1548

As we walked through the park, we saw lots of really nice hummingbird statues.DSCN1549 DSCN1550 DSCN1551 DSCN1552 DSCN1553 DSCN1554 DSCN1558

So here is one variation of the silly tourist photo.  One person usually stands straddling the line or two people can be on opposite hemispheres as we did here.DSCN1563 DSCN1565 DSCN1568

We had a quick look at the shops but didn’t buy anything.DSCN1566 DSCN1567 DSCN1569 DSCN1570

Across the street was a small shopping centre with a bank that didn’t like my ATM card and a Subway sandwich shop that took credit cards so we bought a couple sandwiches.DSCN1571

Back to the taxi rank in front of the monument we bargained with a driver to take us to our hotel near the airport for $25.  I had heard it was $20 to the city and the airport was a bit further.DSCN1572

Getting To Ecuador With Airline Miles

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Most frequent flier programs divide the continent of South America into northern and southern regions.  Ecuador, which is one of the best destinations for eco-tourism falls into the northern region.  I already have a blog with my recommendations for which programs to join if you are new to the world of miles and points.

The gateway cities for Ecuador include Quito (UIO) and Guayaquil (GYE).  I have a separate post for using Guayaquil as a gateway city so in this post I will be using Quito as the example.  In any case, it will be the same number of miles.     Once you have been in the miles and points game for awhile, you will get a feel for which airline to use where but if you are just starting out, Wikipedia will show you a list of all airlines that fly into Quito.

 

ONE WORLD OPTIONS

From North America you can use American Airlines or LATAM.

From South America you can use LATAM.

From Australia and New Zealand you can use Qantas or LATAM via Santiago.

From UK and Europe you can travel via the USA using BA or IB to get to the USA, then AA, LAN or TAM to South America.

From Asia or Africa there are no direct flights so you will need to travel via the USA or Europe.

STAR ALLIANCE OPTIONS

From North America you can use United, Avianca-Taca or Copa

From South America you can use Avianca-Taca

From Australia and New Zealand, Europe, Asia and Africa there are no direct flights, you can use NZ to Buenos Aires (EZE) or travel via the USA.  Depending on which program’s miles you have, this may require one or two awards.

SKYTEAM OPTIONS

From North America you can use AeroMexico or Delta.

From Europe you can use Air Europa, Air France or KLM, or you can connect in the USA on Delta.

From Australia, Asia and Africa there are no direct flights, you will need to travel via the USA or Europe.

 

HOW MANY MILES WILL IT COST?

Every airline member of the 3 main alliances has it’s own frequent flier program.  They often have alliances with other airlines outside the program.  I have made some reference charts for the airline alliances and I strongly recommend that you check out the program of the airline in your country and the USA based partners of each program as the USA airlines tend to have the most lucrative bonuses.  Americans can get very generous credit card bonuses.  Details of credit card partners (and other partners) will be on each airline’s website, however often there are more lucrative sign up bonuses.  Details are usually posted in the Flyer Talk thread so I strongly suggest you read this thread and the Miles Buzz forum before you apply for any cards just in case a better bonus has been offered.  I don’t have any affiliate links and I recommend you do extensive research on your own when applying for airline credit cards.

USING ONE WORLD

AMERICAN AIRLINES

No matter where you live, frequent flyer programs based in the USA usually offer the best deals but it’s still a good idea to look at other members of the alliance.  Try to avoid carriers that charge a fuel surcharge.  Looking at AA’s award chart, we can see that Ecuador is in South America Zone 1.

So let’s look at the chart.  AA no longer has all zones on one convenient chart so you need to look at the website for the region you are departing from.  You will notice there are taxes and fees with certain routes and that the awards are prices as one way trips.

We can see that a South Pacific to Central/South America award will cost 45,000 miles each way (90,000 round trip) in economy, 82,500 (160,000 round trip) in business class and 112,500 each way (225,000 round trip in first class.  AA doesn’t allow you to transit the USA on this award so you must fly on the only carriers that operate between Australia and South America-Qantas and LAN.

If you are based in North America, economy will cost 30,000  each way (60,000 round trip), business class  is 57,500 each way (115,000 round trip) and first is 85,000 each way or 170,000 round trip.  You would be flying on AA or LAN.

AVIOS (BA OR IB)

Avios can be a great bargain for shorter flights.  The awards are priced by distance flown per segment rather than zone to zone.

Avios

Using the Great Circle Mapper, we can see that a direct flight from Miami to Quito would cost 10,000 Avios each way, a direct flight from LAX to Quito would cost 20,000 Avios and a direct flight from NYC to Quito would cost 12,500 Avios.  If you are using credit card miles, transferring them to Avios rather than UA or AA could save you some points.  If you need a connection from elsewhere in the USA to the gateway city, you need to pay for that segment separately with the Avios cost for the distance flown.  Example OKC-MIA is 1222 miles so you need to add 10,000 Avios to the total price of the ticket.

gcm uio

QANTAS FREQUENT FLYER

For Qantas, it is easiest to use their points calculator to see how many points you need, then look for availability.  Not all itineraries can be booked online, sometimes you have to call them.  Using the example of Sydney to Quito we can see that they route through the USA (probably because the Santiago route is very hard to get) and economy is 60,000 points one way.  On the next screen you see the points plus taxes & fees that must be paid by credit card.

qf uio1 qf uio2

 

If you are based somewhere else, leave a comment if you don’t understand this part and I will help you out.  Meanwhile, here is a reference list for other One World carriers.

USING STAR ALLIANCE

United, Avianca and Singapore are probably the most common Star Alliance programs in use because of good credit card deals and buy miles promos.

UNITED AIRLINES

United Airlines is a USA based carrier that offers one way awards on its own flights and other Star Alliance carriers.  Due to the size of their award chart, I can’t paste it here so will link to it and give examples.  For example Seattle to Quito has availability on several dates which I picked at random.  They are colour coded for economy, business/first or all three classes.  Make sure you scroll all the way down to get the best price.  Some routes are only 20k and others are a whopping 45k!

ua uio1 ua uio2

 

AVIANCA TACA LIFEMILES

Lifemiles has some very attractive promos to buy and share miles.  While this doesn’t give you a free trip, it can greatly reduce the cost of a trip especially if you are after business or first class awards.  You need to be an existing member of Lifemiles when they announce  a promo so join now if you haven’t already.  Use their calculator to get an idea of award costs.  This will be a range which depends on class and any promos.

 

They have a Star Alliance Award chart and you can see that they divide the continent of South America into northern and southern regions.  Ecuador is in the Northern South America region.   Australia and New Zealand are in the “Others” category.  The chart shows one way awards.  Personally,  I prefer to keep my Lifemiles for intra-South/Central America awards which can get pricy but are bargains using awards.

Avianca1 Avianca2

SINGAPORE AIRLINES

SQ miles have become much easier to get in recent years.  Americans can use Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi Thank You, Amex Membership Rewards.  Aussies can use the Australian Amex Membership Rewards.  Everyone can use SPG.  Just beware of the high fuel (carrier) surcharges when you use Krisflyer.  Personally, I would be happy to use SQ miles for intra-South America awards where surcharges are low or even non-exixtant but would use other programs to get from Australia to South America.  SQ has only one region for all of South America so their awards can be a bargain if you are traveling around the continent!

SQ South America

I don’t use all the programs that are out there but these are the most commonly used programs by travel hackers in the USA and Australia so do some research to see which one works for you!  Bear in mind that the tickets are not completely free, there is usually a booking fee of $25-50 and various taxes, but you would have to pay the taxes whether you pay cash or miles for the ticket in any case.

WHAT ABOUT JUST PAYING CASH (WELL, CREDIT CARD)?

No, it’s not blasphemy but sometimes it is a good idea to save your miles and simply pay for the ticket.  The 3 main Central/South American carriers – Avianca, Copa & LATAM have been very competitive lately ex-USA and releasing some very good deals.

Planning A Birding Trip To The Mindo Area, Ecuador

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The area around Mindo in the western Andes of Ecuador is rich in birdlife and you could easily spend several weeks here visiting all the different birding hotspots.  Unfortunately, most of us don’t have that kind of luxury and have to pick a few hotspots based on target species.  I use eBird a lot to track other peoples’ sightings and see data on the hotspots so I can make choices that cater to my interests.

GETTING FROM THE AIRPORT TO MINDO

If you fly into Quito, the easiest way to get to Mindo is by official taxi which you can book in the arrival hall.  They even take credit cards!  The fare was $95 which seems high but it’s a 2.5 hour trip and the driver has to return empty.  If we had arrived earlier in the day, we probably would have taken the bus but as it was, we arrived around 5:30pm.

I had looked at rental cars but decided against it as I was worried about road conditions and the cost of an automatic SUV would have been more than using a combination of taxis and buses.  The route gets very twisty & mountain-y once you get past the Mitad del Mundo monument.

There’s no need to spend a night in Quito unless you arrive so late at night you can’t get to Mindo unless you particularly want to see the city.  Since we had limited time, I just wanted to get to the birds asap!

If you do choose to stay in the city, you can economize by taking a bus to Mindo for around $2.50.  Keep an eye on your bags, preferably with you on the bus!

 

  • Flor del Valle has direct buses from northern Quito’s Ofelia bus station:
    • During the week: 8:00, 9:00, 16:00
    • Saturdays: 7:40, 8:20, 9:20, 16:00
    • Sundays: 7:40, 8:20, 9:20, 14:00, 17:00

 

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UIO to Mindo DSCN1061

We passed some toll roads but these were included in the fare.DSCN1062

Even though we skirted the perimeter of Quito, we still caught the evening rush hour.  Scenery was pretty cool until it got dark.  DSCN1063 DSCN1064 DSCN1065 DSCN1066 DSCN1067

Once we got past the city, we were hungry so asked the driver to stop at a roadside cafe where we bought sandwiches, chips & drinks.  I knew we would be up at 4:30am the next day so wanted to eat in the car so we could sleep as soon as we checked in.  We bought the driver dinner as well but the whole bill came to around $15 so no biggie!DSCN1068

CHOOSING THE BEST BIRDING HOTSPOTS

In Mindo, you are spoiled for choice!  There is an excellent overview on the Birds In Ecuador site. After reading through all their descriptions, comparing the sightings on eBird and consulting with our guide, Alex we came up with a good list where we would hopefully find the target birds.

Mindo area

  1.  I really wanted to see the Cock of the Rocks, Antpittas and Hummingbirds at Angel Paz Refuge.
  2. Oilbirds can be elusive and in places that are hard to get to but near Mindo you can drive right up to one oilbird cave and have only a 5 minute walk.
  3. The trail above Mindo, sometimes called the waterfall trail has lots of good birds and is known for Rose-faced Parrots.
  4. Milpe & Rio Silanche are also good spots for parrots, quetzals & trogons.

We stayed 3 nights at Sachatamia Lodge (review to come) and I organized 2 full days of birding.  The final day we had a full morning available but I wanted to save it to chase up any species that we didn’t get the previous days.

The first day, I grouped the places which had their own guides (you pay an admission fee which includes the property owner or family member as guide) and all we needed was transportation.  I had Sachatamia book us a driver, Daniel for $150 full day to take us to Angel Paz & the Oilbird Cave (Cueva de los Tayos), then drop us in Mindo town so we could wander around.

The second day, I booked a full day birding with one of Mindo’s top birding guides, Alex Luna for $160.  I told him which species I was especially interested in (parrots) so he could recommend the best places where parrots have been seen by him and other guides.  The guides in Mindo are all friendly with each other and share information so that makes a better birding experience for everyone!

If we had had a third full day, we would have gone to Bellavista or Tandayapa.  There really is so much to choose from and we made choices based on best places to see parrots, quetzals, trogons and a couple specialty local birds – Cock of the Rock, Antpittas & Oilbirds.  Everyone has different interests so I suggest reading through all the descriptions to make sure you choose the best ones for your own interest.

CHOOSING A BIRDING LODGE IN THE MINDO AREA

It’s pretty hard to go wrong here.  The Mindo area is blessed with some really fantastic birding lodges and all of them can organize transport and guides.  We are on a pretty tight budget but still wanted to have beautiful birdy grounds, hummingbird feeders and located near birding hotspots.  I also like to maximize my travel expenses by earning miles for bookings so I considered several options like Hotels.com, Rocketmiles & Pointshound.  Not every lodge is represented on every booking site.  At the time of booking, I needed 3 nights on Hotels.com to get a free night for a future booking and I used TopCashBack as a portal to save more money.  You always need to check a few options and do the math as you never know who could be running a promo or have the best deals on offer!

Since we wouldn’t have our own car and would be dependent on taxis and buses to get around when we weren’t birding, I wanted to be near a main road, not too far from town.  I also prefer a-la-carte restaurants to fixed meals or buffets.

Sachatamia Lodge fit all the requirements – birdy grounds, hummingbird feeders, well located and easily bookable on my preferred booking sites.  It was also one of the cheaper options in the category I was looking at.  It turned out to be a great choice and we loved it!

I also heard great things about Bellavista & Tandayapa so it’s always a good idea to check a few lodges before choosing one that suits your needs.